A new Triple-A report says a lot more Californians are traveling more than 50 miles from home this holiday season. But it might still be too early for the travel industry to breathe a sigh of relief.

Cynthia Harris with Triple-A Northern California says the number of Californians hitting the roads this week and next is up more than 11 percent from 2008.

Harris: “We’ve had dismal travel numbers in the past several years, so we are just starting to climb back to our original travel numbers from three or four years ago.”

Harris says that’s why in the big picture, the 11 percent rise is actually not a huge increase. After all, the travel industry is still recovering from the past few years. She also says Californians this year are more likely to keep their travel costs down than cancel their trips entirely.

Harris: “They’re traveling closer distances to home, people are spending less money on hotels by staying with family and friends.”

Though most travelers will drive to their loves ones, air travel is up as well.